Constant Troyon

Constant Troyon 1810 - 1865 FRENCH A SEATED BASSET HOUND (UN BASSET ARTÉSIAN NORMAND, ASSIS) signed C. Troyon and dated 1855 (lower right) oil on canvas 45 1/2 by 37 1/2 in. 115.7 by 95. 2 cm Read Condition Report Read Condition Report Register or Log-in to view condition report Saleroom Notice Authentication We would like to thank Michel Schulman for kindly confirming the authenticity of this lot which will be included in his forthcoming Constant Troyon catalogue raisonné. Provenance Maurice Boudot-Lamotte (1878-1958), Paris Thence by descent Sale: Christie's, Paris, June 23, 2009, lot 138, illustrated Catalogue Note Beginning in 1854, Troyon made annual summer trips to the Touraine region of the Loire Valley to visit his friend and fellow artist, Léon Félix Loysel. During these stays, he painted scenes of the hunting dogs who occupied Loysel’’s vast kennels. The most well-known of the series depicts a game keeper leading several hounds into the woods (Musée d’’Orsay, Paris). Our seated French basset hound, identifiable by its crooked front legs and its short, wiry, tri-or bi-colored coat, may have been one of the occupants of Loysel’’s kennels who “sat” for Troyon during one of his visits. At the same time, Troyon’’s depiction is more akin to a portrait, an approach that is very different from his other known paintings of Loysel’’s dogs. In 1855, Troyon had exhibited eight paintings at the, Exposition Universelle, of which two had dogs as the subject. Our basset hound, also painted in 1855, may have been the result of a private commission to paint a favorite dog, stemming from Troyon’’ s success at the Paris exhibition. Like Troyon’’s paintings of cows, his canine subjects can trace their lineage back to seventeenth century Dutch painting. It was during a trip to Holland in 1846-1847 that Troyon discovered Dutch animal painters; especially Aelbert Cuyp and Paulus Potter and he may also have seen the monumental depictions of dogs by Frans Snyders. But a more contemporary influence on Troyon may have been Gustave Courbet. While Courbet’’s repertoire of subjects was more varied than Troyon’’s, Courbet was also an accomplished painter of animals and indeed one may argue that these two artists were the greatest French animal painters of the nineteenth century. In 1855, Courbet was also in the spotlight, exhibiting eleven paintings at the Exposition Universelle and forty works in his Pavillon de Realism on the Avenue Montaigne. While Courbet’’s subjects would have been the initial attraction, it was more likely his bravura brushwork and paint application that intrigued a fellow “painterly” artist such as Troyon. We can see Courbet’’s influence in the coarse coat of Troyon’’s basset hound and in the textures of the trees and foliage in the background. If we did not know, we might assume we were in Ornans. The present work formed part of the extensive collection of the painter Maurice Boudot-Lamotte (1878-1958), who exhibited landscapes, still-lifes and portraits at various Paris Salons in the early twentieth century. See More See Less

CONSTANT TROYAN (1810-1865), FRENCH A RIVER SCENE WITH FIGURES AND ANIMALS Watercolour; traces of a signature? lower left, given to “C. Tryon”, titled and numbered “157” to an old typed label also inscribed to the remains of an old gallery label verso 9.75" x 7.25" — 24.8 x 18.4 cm. Provenance: From The Collection of W.S. Hoare. Esq., No. 157 to an old label verso; Leggatt Bros., London; By descent, Toronto Note: Contained in a frame with Charles D. Soar’’s framer’’s label, Kensington, London verso

Constant Troyon (French, 1810-1865) Shepherd and sheep. Oil on chamfered wood panel, initialed in the lower right corner, in a fancy gilt frame overall 16-1/2 x 13-1/2 in. Private collection, Chicago, IL. Born in Sevres in 1810, the son of a porcelain manufacturer, an undercurrent of meticulous draftsmanship throughout his carreer. His style is associated with the style of the Barbizon painters. After he had moved to the Hague and viewed paintings by Paulus Potter, he specialized in animal paintings. He received the Legion of Honor, accolades at the Paris Salon, and the support of Napoleon III. View on AspireAuctions.com Condition: Approximately 1/4 inpainting, some may be masked by older varnish. Last conservation treatment in 2002.

Constant Troyon (1810-1865) Cattle at the river. Oil on canvas. Monogrammed lower left. Verso auction notes. Restored. Expert report: Dr. Günther Rehbein, Kunstsammlungen der Stadt Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, 23.02.1948. Provenance: private collection Baden-Wuerttemberg. Troyon, Constant. 1810 Sèvres - 1865 Paris. Kühe am Fluss. Öl auf Leinwand. U.l. monogr. Verso Auktionsvermerke. Altrest. H. 23,5, B. 54 cm Gutachten: Dr. Günther Rehbein, Kunstsammlungen der Stadt Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, 23.02.1948. Provenienz: Privatsammlung Baden-Württemberg.

Description: TROYON, CONSTANT 1810 Sèvres - 1865 Paris Der Holzfäller. Öl auf Leinwand. Doubliert. 49,5 x 35cm. Signiert unten rechts: C. Troyon. Rahmen. Rückseitig: Auf dem Keilrahmen Klebeetikett der Galerie Dr. Bühler, München. Literatur: Müllerschön, Bernd/Maier, Thomas, "Die Maler der Schule von Barbizon - Wegbereiter des Impressionismus", Stuttgart 2002, Farbabb. S. 335. Provenienz: Schwäbische Privatsammlung. Vorliegendes Gemälde stammt aus der besten Schaffensperiode von Troyon. Mit dem Motiv der "Holzfäller" verbanden die Meister der Schule von Barbizon schon ab Mitte des 19. Jahrhunderts ihre Kritik an der Zerstörung des urwüchsigen Waldes von Fontainebleau. Und dies mit Erfolg. Ihrer Initiative ist es zu verdanken, dass Kaiser Napoléon III 1853 und erweiternd 1861 große Teile des Waldes unter Naturschutz stellen ließ. Infotext_Schwäbische Sammlung . TROYON, CONSTANT 1810 Sèvres - 1865 Paris The Woodcutter. Oil on canvas. Relined. 49,5 x 35cm. Signed lower right: C. Troyon. Framed. Verso: Adhesive label on the stretcher of the Gallery Dr. Bühler, Munich. Literature: Müllerschön, Bernd/Maier, Thomas, "Die Maler der Schule von Barbizon - Wegbereiter des Impressionismus", Stuttgart 2002, fig. p. 335. Provenance: Private collection, Southern Germany. The painting present stems from the best period of Troyon's work. The masters of the School of Barbizon connected their criticism of the destruction of the native forest of Fontainebleau with the motif of the "woodcutter" as early as the middle of the 19th century. And they have done so with success. Thanks to their initiative Emperor Napoléon III put great parts of the forest unter nature protection in 1853 and extending in 1861. Infotext_Swabian private collection.